So excited for this new chapter! I have been holding onto parts of this for way too long, and I'm so glad that my characters finally complied with me. Sorry for the long wait on this next installment, life is a little crazy so I unfortunately don't have a set posting schedule, but I appreciate all of you for hanging on and thank you so much for the well wishes! I think all my Steroline shippers are going to be pretty happy with this chapter so enjoy!
Caroline took a deep breath when she noticed the tall, brown haired man stepping out of the red mini cooper in her driveway. She was still upset with Stefan for what had happened at the party and not just for the fact that he had lied to her. All the lies had put her in a very difficult place with Elena, one that Caroline did not like in the least. Knowing that she had violated her best friend's trust made her heart ache. Worse than that, Caroline had no idea how to make it up to her.
"Go away Stefan." She practically shouted, letting the venom she felt seep into her voice. A small part of her felt better seeing him wince at her reaction, but most of her felt even more miserable.
"Caroline would you please just talk to me? You've been dodging my calls for days now." He pleaded with a frown.
'God how can he look so cute when he's such an ass?' Caroline thought to herself, looking up at him from her kneeling position next to patch of weeds. 'It's like kicking a puppy.' Slowly, she stood up, wiping her dirt covered hands on her cut offs.
"Are you going to lie to me again? Cause if you are, I'm busy." She snapped, though her voice had softened a little. She could see Stefan brighten as her voice lost it's edge.
"Look I'm sorry I left out a few details..." He started.
"A FEW details?" She replied, incensed. "Try, the most important details!"
"Ok ok you're right. They were pretty big details. I know I messed up, but I honestly don't know how to make things better here." Stefan replied, raking a hand through his mussed up hair.
"I don't either." She replied, crossing her arms over her chest. "You made me lose Elena's trust. Do you realize how hard that is for me? We haven't had a fight like this since we were 8. She lent me her favorite glitter lip gloss and I lost it. We didn't speak for a month, and this is about a hell of a lot more than lip gloss this time."
"I'm sure Elena will forgive your part in this. You were almost in the dark as much as she was." Stefan replied trying to help.
"I would have to talk to her first, which is really hard to do when she's in Mystic Falls and won't answer any of my calls, texts, or emails." Caroline answered, tears pricking at the corners of her eyes. Everything felt so wrong, so completely not how she had imagined it would be.
She closed her eyes to swipe at the tears, and felt warm, strong arms envelope her into a hug. Stefan felt so solid, so incredibly... right. For a moment she forgot why she had been upset in the first place. He pulled back to look at her, his hands reaching to cup her cheeks.
"She can't possibly stay mad at you forever." He replied, his face close enough that she could feel his breath on her cheek. She could sense her resolve slipping with every beat of her racing heart. Her eyes darted to his lips, tracing their shape in her mind. Glancing back up she noticed his heated gaze resting on her. She could feel her chest seize with nervous excitement.
Slowly, he lowered his head and captured her mouth with his own. Her mind went blank. She felt like she was floating.
Caroline threaded her fingers through Stefan's hair, her body melting into his. His hands were everywhere; in her hair, pulling her against his firm chest, running along the sides of her face. Her lips parted to allow access for his tongue and its slow dance with her own. She heard a soft moan float through the air, vaguely acknowledging that it had come from her own lips. Realization suddenly dawned on her and Caroline pulled away as reality smacked her across the face.
"We can't do this." She replied, clearly out of breath. Stefan pulled her in closer and leaned his forehead against hers.
"When then?" He panted.
"After I fix things with Elena. I can't feel good about us until I can put this behind me." She replied. Unable to help herself, she reached up and planted a soft kiss on his lips. He sighed as she pulled away and nodded.
"I'll be here."
...X...
Damon took a sip of the dark, amber, bourbon in his glass, savoring the sweet burn of the liquid as it ran down his throat. The fire had burned down to embers long ago, casting short shadows on the wall around the fireplace. He found himself sorting through that night for what was probably the hundredth time. 'God I'm an idiot.' He thought sourly. 'Why was I so afraid to say anything to her for so long?'
If only Katherine had been just a few seconds late.
He heard his brothers footsteps on the wood floor of the living room. Stefan had never been good at sneaking up on Damon. He was always able to detect his presence, regardless of how quiet Stefan thought he was being.
"Are you here to yell at me again? Cause you'll have to excuse my lack of enthusiasm with your problems, Stefan."
"You are an idiot. Do you realize that?" Stefan growled, anger threading into his voice. "And your stupidity is putting me in a very awkward place with Caroline right now."
"Oh so Blondie IS involved. No wonder you seem to give a damn about my life." Damon snorted, frowning at the emptiness of his glass. "And here I thought we might actually be bonding over something."
"If you had just told Elena the truth, none of this drama would be happening right now. You realize that this whole situation is your fault."
"I think you're forgetting that you were very much on board with this plan before it all went south baby bro. I wouldn't want to hog all the credit." Damon retorted. Stefan frowned and ran a hand through his hair, telling Damon just how truthful his remark was in much better terms than any words could. Damon sighed. "I was just about to tell her when Katherine showed up. I didn't want this anymore than you."
"Just figure out how to fix it." Stefan answered, his voice softening. "Please."
Damon nodded, absentmindedly turning his empty glass back and forth in his hand before setting it on the coffee table. He noticed that Stefan hadn't moved.
"What?" He asked without looking up. He heard Stefan sigh.
"Are you ok?" His younger brother asked. Damon dreaded seeing the concern that he was sure would be on Stefan's face when he looked up. Standing, he reached for the decanter to refill his sad little glass.
"Just peachy little bro. Why?"
"It's just... somethings been up with you lately. You've been snarkier, if that's even possible, and Klaus has been around a lot lately." Stefan stopped and exhaled loudly. "Did something happen?"
'Oh here we go.' Thought Damon sourly, 'He's overdue for a self righteous speech.' He met Stefan's searching gaze with a shrug, and an eye roll.
"Can't a girl make new friends without there being any underlying sexual tension?" Damon quipped, causing Stefan to frown.
"I just want to make sure that you're not in over your head." Stefan finally replied after a minute of staring down his brother.
Damon winced at his brothers words. The truth was that he had gotten in over his head. Klaus was pulling the strings and god only knew what had happened the day Calvin Shuler died. Damon was sure that Klaus had to be involved in it, but he also knew that Klaus would have done everything possible to keep the investigation from ever swinging in his direction. That didn't mean he wouldn't hesitate to divert blame to someone else though. Klaus could be ruthless when he felt threatened.
"I'll be fine." Damon finally forced out, quietly. He could feel Stefan's searching gaze boring into him.
"Go talk to her." Stefan finally replied, breaking the silence. Damon raised an eyebrow at him.
"And say what? Sorry I didn't tell you that I used to screw your evil twin when I was in high school, but let's put that behind us and be friends?" Damon scoffed, taking a long drag of his drink. "That's some Hallmark card."
"Maybe if you put as much effort into apologizing as you did in coming up with your obnoxious one liners you might have an answer." Stefan replied, slumping down onto the leather couch. Damon watched his little brother check his phone before fixing his gaze on his older sibling. "She moved back home to Mystic Falls you know."
"Guilt trips don't work on me." Damon quipped, halfheartedly. Stefan shrugged.
"Oh I would say it's working pretty good from what I can see."
"When did you get so annoyingly optimistic?" Damon asked, frowning.
"It's a good way to live. You should try it sometime." Stefan replied, matter-of-factly. "I'll even show you how to create your own brand of hero hair."
Damon let out a strangled chuckle of surprise at his brother's remark. Just the idea of using that much gel made Damon cringe, but he did have to admit the idea of trading in his villain card was oddly pleasing.
"You know, it's so strange to think about, but you always thought Katherine was your soul mate right?" He asked, gaining a scowl from Damon.
"Please don't start with the shrink shit again."
"Just hear me out." Stefan said gesturing to Damon to calm down. "What if she was your soul mate... well part of your soul mate... you just picked the wrong one."
"You're babbling Stef. Get to the point."
"What of Elena is your actual soul mate." He rushed on when Damon opened his mouth to retort. "What if you were drawn to Katherine because she was the twin sister to your soul mate, but you just didn't know it yet. Like the wires got crossed somewhere along the line."
"I think you've been reading too many romance novels lately."
"And I think you owe it to yourself to find out if I'm right or not." Stefan shot back.
"Look I'll go to Mystic Falls and talk to Elena. But, I'm not doing this for you and Blondie." He commented.
"Good." Stefan answered. "Cause if you were, then everything I just said means absolutely nothing."
"It will still mean absolutely nothing when I get back. I will just have proof that you were wrong." Damon replied, grabbing his keys from the side table and stalking out the front door. Stefan sighed and reached for the decanter and a clean glass. He sure hoped he was right or Damon was going to have a lot of fun making his life miserable.
...X...
Elena stared blankly at the blue porch ceiling as the swing slowly creaked back and forth. Jenna had already been out to check on her. Elena knew that her aunt was concerned, but Jenna was in just as much trouble as Caroline, or anyone else that knew the truth and kept it from her. Like Damon, but thinking about him hurt more than anyone else. He had seen the resemblance, had known Katherine intimately, and said nothing.
Jenna had attempted to explain. She'd at least had enough empathy for the situation to look ashamed when Elena accused her of keeping her birth a secret. Jeremy hadn't known either, and they had quite the family dinner discussing the implications of everything this meant to the three of them. Jenna tried to reassure her that Elena's birth status hadn't meant anything to Miranda and Grayson. They had wanted a baby so desperately, after the multiple miscarriages that Miranda had experienced, that the joy they found in Elena surpassed any other thoughts. Jeremy had been a complete surprise, Jenna explained, but the two of them had meant the absolute world to their parents and that was what the 'siblings' should dwell on. Not the circumstances of their relationship to one another. Jenna's words helped a little, but it did nothing to quell the questions she had in her mind regarding her actual birth parents.
And why they hadn't wanted her.
She closed her eyes, breathing slowly, trying to think about other things. She heard a car pull up on the street, it's engine purring softly before going silent. The sound of a car door closing, caused her to look out from her hiding place. Damon was waltzing up to the house, hands in the pockets of his black leather jacket, eyes taking in the sight of the neighborhood as he walked. Elena suddenly felt cold, and rubbed furiously at the goose bumps that had risen on her arms.
Halfway up the walk, Damon noticed her staring at him and stopped in his tracks. He seemed uncomfortable. His typical self assured air had disappeared, making him look younger than she had ever believed he could. Damon always seemed larger than life to her, older and wiser and full of experience. This Damon just looked like a normal guy. He gave her a weak smile and finished the climb up onto the porch of the Gilbert farmhouse.
"Hi." He said, watching her intently.
"Hi." Elena responded, her voice shaking slightly. She wasn't sure if it was due to anger or uncertainty, but probably a mixture of both.
"Do you mind if I sit?" Damon asked, gesturing to the open spot on the swing. Elena looked from Damon, to the swing and back, before finally nodding and sliding over to accommodate him. They sat in awkward silence for what seemed like eternity before Damon finally spoke up again. "I'm not really sure where to start." He confided.
"Why don't you start at the beginning and explain to me why you led me on." She replied, a little more bitterly than she had meant to. Damon winced and then nodded.
"Katherine and I have a pretty intense history, as I'm sure you've gathered. She had me wrapped around her little finger when we were younger. It... wasn't the healthiest relationship." He answered slowly, running a hand through his hair. "When my parents died, I had to take care of Stefan. He was only 17 when it happened, and he needed me. Katherine didn't want the responsibility that came with my new situation so she left. Almost destroyed me when she did. I don't have any idea what would have become of Stefan and I if it hadn't been for Ric."
"I didn't realize you had been through so much." Elena replied, unconsciously reaching for his hand in empathy. "Jeremy and I at least had Jenna when our..." she stopped for a minute waiting for the right word to materialize, "parents... died." She finally answered. Damon nodded slowly.
"When I saw your article in the Whitmore newsletter, I was genuinely interested in who you were. You're a good writer, Elena." Damon swallowed hard. "It wasn't until I saw your online profile that I realized you had to have some kind of connection with Katherine. I thought you WERE Katherine for a minute, until I read your bio." He turned to look at her. "But the more we talked, and the more I learned about you, I started to understand how incredibly different you both are."
"I'm sorry I'm such a disappointment to you." Elena started before Damon fixed her with an incredulous look.
"How could you, Elena Gilbert, ever think you were a disappointment?" He asked, taking her hand in his. "Why do you think I was so afraid to tell you about Katherine until I was 100% sure what your connection to her was? I was afraid of losing you, of you looking at me like you did that night when you walked out of the party." He sighed. "Like I was the worst scum on the planet."
"You're not scum." Elena whispered, watching hope flood his gaze. "It was just overwhelming. I didn't know what I was supposed to think."
"It's a lot to process that's for sure." Damon answered, rubbing his chin. "But one thing I do know is that Katherine Pierce is very good at bending the truth to serve her own purposes."
"What do you mean by that?" Elena replied quizzically.
"When Katherine is bothered by something, she typically twists the truth to make herself feel better. For instance, telling you that you were nothing to me? She's jealous of our connection and wanted to make me suffer. It was just a bonus that she hurt you in the process too." Damon answered. Elena's eyes searched his.
"What do I mean to you?" She asked cautiously. Damon sucked in a breath. She knew she had him in a corner.
"I value your friendship." He responded.
"That's a load of bull." Elena spat, causing Damon's eyes to widen. "You're lying to me again. There is one thing on this planet that I hate more than anything, and that is being lied to."
"I can't let myself think about what you mean to me. You don't understand. I can't let you get caught up in all of this. If anything happened to you I don't know what I would do." Damon explained.
"It's Klaus isn't it?" She asked, her voice softening.
"What makes you think that?" Damon questioned, his voice trailing off with the unfinished question.
"I may not have expected the whole evil twin thing, but I'm not as oblivious to everything as you might want to believe. I don't trust that man. He's been trying awfully hard to be nice to Caroline." Elena explained. "When Katherine showed up, I knew there was some kind of plan. Why else would he work so hard for us to be there? Buying us expensive dresses that we couldn't resist wearing just ensured we would be there for his nasty plot to thicken."
"I think Klaus had something to do with Caroline's Uncle's untimely death." Damon added. "And I think he knows that I'm suspicious of him."
"I think he did something too. I'm worried about Caroline and what she's gotten herself into." Elena remarked in agreement. "If you'll let me, I want to help you prove it."
"As long as I get to be Watson. He's way cooler than Sherlock." Damon teased.
"What? Robert Downey Jr. was amazing as Sherlock. Jude Law couldn't lay a finger on him."
"Possibly, but Benedict Cumberbatch would be completely helpless without Martin Freeman." Damon shot back. Elena rolled her eyes.
"Touche. Fine you can be Watson." She conceded.
"I'm glad you're not mad at me anymore." He stated, smiling mischievously at her. She shook her head.
"Oh I'm still mad at you, but that can wait. Right now we have more important things to deal with than my parental status and how much of a complete ass you are." Elena explained. "Now, let's figure out the plan."
